Apple is also adding one new application to mix for iPhone users: Voice Memo, which will join other applications on the main screen, can be used for dictating notes that can be stored or sent via e-mail.
For peripheral makers, Apple said version 3.0 of the iPhone OS software makes extended use of Bluetooth connectivity — and even unlocks the feature for owners of the second-generation iPod Touch, which contained the necessary hardware though it lacked software support.
So, for example, the iPhone or iPod Touch could control everything from speakers to medical devices connected via the wireless networking technology. In an on-stage demo, a representative from healthcare device maker LifeScan showed the iPhone being used with a glucose monitoring device to plan appropriate meals.
Questions Remain
During a Q&A session following the announcement, Apple officials were naturally optimistic about how the new features will be received, though they also noted they couldn't comment in detail on certain aspects because the company is in a quiet period before its next earnings announcement.
As a result, while the update may have addressed a number of features sought by developers and users, questions are still likely to remain.
For instance, while some developers have complained about unclear guidelines for acceptance into the iPhone App Store, or about Apple's reasons for rejecting them — spawning a cottage industry of rival app stores — Phil Schiller, Apple's vice president of marketing, brushed the issue aside.
"The growth rate of the App Store is unprecedented," Schiller said. "The numbers speak for themselves."
However, he did say Apple is constantly striving to improve the turnaround time for approval into the App Store. Still, he added that the number of applications makes it difficult for timely approval, as do the number of checks Apple undertakes to ensure submitted programs work properly and don't include pornography or pose a virus or privacy threat.
"At the end of the day, we have over 25,000 great solutions out there working," he said.
Additionally, while Forstall talked up Apple's introduction of push features in the upcoming software release, he also said that Apple would no make no guarantees on the feature's reliability or persistence. Still, he added that Apple would strive to make it reliable.
Apple's Strength in Apps
Despite those concerns, analyst Nathan Brookwood said he's impressed with where Apple is headed with the new release. "This really does provide them with a huge advantage when you look at all the software that's already available for the device and what they're doing going forward to improve the ecosystem for developers and partners," he told InternetNews.com.
"You see Android, RIM, and Microsoft building app stores, but Apple isn't standing still and it's hard to see how some of these competitors can catch up."
